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Internet was restored in Badlapur in Maharashtra's Thane district after it was suspended as tensions simmered in the town over the sexual assault of two kindergarten girls, aged three and four, by a school sweeper. The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) said it would send a team to Badlapur for an inquiry into the case.
Local train services on the Ambernath-Karjat section resumed after 10 hours as protesters held a rail roko protest at Badlapur railway station.
The two kindergarten girls were sexually abused in the school toilet on August 13, according to the police. The incident came to light after one of the girls narrated the ordeal to her parents on August 16. The accused, Akshay Shinde, was arrested on August 17.
On Tuesday, thousands of people gathered at Badlapur railway station after the incident came to light and held protests, forcing the diversion of 12 express and mail trains, partial cancellation of 30 local trains and diversion of some long-distance trains
The protests turned violent angry locals threw stones at the school and vandalised it. A bus near the Badlapur railway station was also damaged. Police broke up the protests after nine hours by lathicharging at them to clear the rail tracks.
An FIR was registered against 300 people who were protesting against the incident on Tuesday. Thane Police have arrested over 40 people and they will be presented in court today. DCP, GRP of Railway Police, Manoj Patil, said the situation was normal and police were looking for 300 people seen on CCTV footage during the rail roko protest.
Parents raised concerns over why a female staff member was not assigned to clean the girls' washroom, a standard practice that could have potentially prevented such an incident. Meanwhile, the accused, Akshay Shinde, a cleaning staffer, was produced in a Kalyan court and the media was not allowed inside the court premises.
The school management suspended the principal, a class teacher, and a female attendant, over the incident. The accused, Akshay Shinde, was appointed on August 1 on a contractual basis.
Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis stated he has directed the Thane Police Commissioner to prepare a proposal to try the case in a fast-track court. Meanwhile, the accused was sent to a three-day police remand by a court.
Chief Minister Eknath Shinde assured action against the school and said the case would be fast-tracked and that the guilty won’t be spared.
Speaking to ANI, NCPCR Chairperson Priyank Kanungo alleged that the school authorities tried to suppress the case and the concerned police station did not register the FIR timely. He also blamed the school's negligence for the incident, and said that action would be taken against the administration for trying to "suppress the case".
